Burns : journal of the International Society for Burn Injuries
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Observational Study
Candidemia in major burn patients and its possible risk factors: A 6-year period retrospective study at a burn ICU.
The aims of this study were to evaluate the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of candidemia in a typical burn ICU, and to determine the risk factors associated with candidemia among major burn patients. ⋯ Candidemia has a high incidence and mortality in major burn patients. The changes in etiology and drug sensitivity may make new challenges for the management of candidemia in burn ICUs.
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Despite advances in surgical management and critical care for burn surgery, morbidity and mortality of patients with severe burns remains high. Especially in the pediatric population, burns often lead to devastating consequences such as the necessity of corrective surgery until adulthood. Worldwide, 80%-90% of all severe burns occur in low to middle income countries. But also in high income countries, burns are distributed inequitably. Risk factors include age, sex, socioeconomic status, and ethnicity. ⋯ The study emphasizes the need for highly specific measures of burn prevention and indicates the necessity of focusing on certain target groups who are especially vulnerable to burns, such as immigrants from less developed countries.
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The number of burns in Portugal remains considerably large and therefore constitutes a major public health problem. There is a shortage of studies describing the epidemiological and clinical impact of seasonality on burn centre admissions, particularly in high income countries. ⋯ Winter seems to be associated with older patients and with the most severe burns (deeper and more often needing surgery). This study was designed to fill the gap in seasonal burn profile in Portugal and it helps in establishing preventive strategies and better resource allocation.
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Burns are physically debilitating and potentially fatal injuries. The standard-of-care for burn wounds is the coverage with gauze dressings designed to minimize trauma to the regenerating epidermis and dermis during dressing changes. However, deep partial- and full-thickness burns always heal slowly when standard wound care alone is performed. We have previously reported that peptide amphiphile (PA) gels, pH-induced self-assembling nanostructured fibrous scaffolds, promote cell proliferation and have great potential in regenerative medicine for rapid repair of tissues. In this study, we hypothesized that the PA gels are capable of accelerating wound healing in burn injury. ⋯ This biomaterial represents a new therapeutic strategy to overcome current clinical challenges in the treatment of injuries resulting from burns.